Description

Metals Report - Ukraine Q3 2014

BMI View: Ukraine's metals sector will see modest growth over the forecast period, with a handful of newprojects to increase production growth. Production will not return to pre-crisis highs, however, due toglobal overcapacity and steel prices not making substantive gains over 2013. There are no majorexpansions on the cards, and no major players in either the aluminium or steel industries have announcedsubstantial investment plans.

Figures recorded at the start of 2014 have been disappointing. Ukrainian companies manufactured477,000mt of steel pipes during January-April 2014, according to figures released by Ukraine's cabinet ofministers. The steel pipe production was down 16.1% year-on-year (y-o-y), the figures revealed. Thecountry's steel pipe production was recorded as 140,600mt in April 2014, up 3.6% month-on-month (m-om),according to the official figures. This does not bode well for the country's near-term outlook and forUkraine's attempts to hit production targets, which BMI is predicting to increase y-o-y in 2014 and in eachconsecutive year through to the end of our forecast period in 2018.